Debra Dyer, MD, FACR, Professor, a radiologist at National Jewish Health. Dr. Dyer serves as Chair of the Department of Radiology. In this video, she speaks about New Medicare Lung Cancer Screening Guidelines a Huge Step Forward – More Lives to be Saved.
As screening becomes more prevalent, providers should pursue quality assurance.
New Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposals to reduce the initial age and smoking history requirements for lung cancer screening (LCS) could make these exams the most effective cancer screening tests in history. The American College of Radiology® (ACR®), the GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer, and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) will collaborate with CMS, medical providers, and patients to implement and update screening recommendations.
Each year, lung cancer kills more people than breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer combined. In high-risk patients, annual lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) considerably reduces lung cancer fatalities.
Despite this, less than 15% of Americans who met earlier requirements are examined.
According to the American Cancer Society, there will be 131,180 lung cancer deaths in 2022. Every year, increased screening could save 30,000–60,000 deaths in the United States.
CMS expanded coverage to thousands of independent diagnostic testing facilities nationwide and retained a requirement that providers use Lung-RADS® structured reporting, in addition to lowering the initial screening age from 55 to 50 and smoking history requirements from 30 pack years to 20 pack years.